| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee: | 1When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, |
| 2And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. | 2and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. |
| 3Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat. | 3Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive. |
| 4Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. | 4Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. |
| 5Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven. | 5Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. |
| 6Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats: | 6Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies; |
| 7For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. | 7for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost. "Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you. |
| 8The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words. | 8You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments. |
| 9Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words. | 9Do not speak to fools, for they will scorn your prudent words. |
| 10Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless: | 10Do not move an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless, |
| 11For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee. | 11for their Defender is strong; he will take up their case against you. |
| 12Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge. | 12Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge. |
| 13Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. | 13Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will not die. |
| 14Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell. | 14Punish them with the rod and save them from death. |
| 15My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. | 15My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad indeed; |
| 16Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things. | 16my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right. |
| 17Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long. | 17Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD. |
| 18For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off. | 18There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. |
| 19Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way. | 19Listen, my son, and be wise, and set your heart on the right path: |
| 20Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh: | 20Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, |
| 21For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags. | 21for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags. |
| 22Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old. | 22Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. |
| 23Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. | 23Buy the truth and do not sell it-- wisdom, instruction and insight as well. |
| 24The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him. | 24The father of a righteous child has great joy; a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him. |
| 25Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice. | 25May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful! |
| 26My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways. | 26My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways, |
| 27For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit. | 27for an adulterous woman is a deep pit, and a wayward wife is a narrow well. |
| 28She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men. | 28Like a bandit she lies in wait and multiplies the unfaithful among men. |
| 29Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? | 29Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? |
| 30They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. | 30Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine. |
| 31Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. | 31Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! |
| 32At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. | 32In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. |
| 33Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. | 33Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things. |
| 34Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. | 34You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging. |
| 35They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again. | 35"They hit me," you will say, "but I'm not hurt! They beat me, but I don't feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?" |
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